da fezbet： Considering it is by nature a glorified friendly designed to provide a financial boost for a number of community-based charities around the UK, the 2017 Community Shield final was an unusually feisty affair – perhaps because Arsenal and Chelsea have never seen eye-to-eye as London rivals, perhaps because the Gunners showed the Blues up in last season’s FA Cup final, or perhaps because both sides know the new Premier League season is shaping up to be the most competitive yet by a significant distance.
da dobrowin： Either way, the task of officiating proceedings and keeping a lid on what proved to be a tempered afternoon at Wembley fell to Bobby Madley, whose refereeing display on Sunday divided opinion for a number of reasons. Most notable was the sheer number of fouls awarded compared to tackles; 29 successful challenges opposed to 20 that resulted in a sharp burst from Madley’s whistle.
Whilst Madley can only make calls on what’s happening in front of him, it also suggests he never quite took full control of the match, despite dishing out one yellow card per five fouls. That’s perhaps why Pedro eventually saw red for a lunge from behind, his studs going into the back of Mohamed Elneny’s ankle, although that decision hasn’t sat well with everybody.
“The big decision was, of course, the dismissal of Pedro. The punishment for his late, studs-led challenge down the back of Mohamed Elneny’s achilles was surprising given that last season such tackles usually resulted in a yellow card. However it was from behind, meaning the Arsenal man’s safety could have been endangered.”
Former referee Graham Poll, who worked in the top flight for over a decade, has backed Madley’s decision to send Pedro off, but admitted he probably wouldn’t have been taking an early shower if he’d made the same challenge last season. Where do you stand on Pedro’s red card? Let us know by voting below…
Madley’s other controversial call of the afternoon centred around another Chelsea attacker, Willian. The silky Brazilian charged into the box and after coming into close proximity with Hector Bellerin suddenly hit the deck. Standing at a short distance and a good angle, Madley almost instantly issued Willian a yellow card for diving, but replays showed the Blues winger had inadvertently kicked into his own leg – something that may have been caused by the slightest of touches from Bellerin.
“The caution for Willian, for simulation, was a fascinating one. At first it looked like a dive but replays showed that an accidental contact meant Willian was off balance and clipped himself, causing his fall. It wasn’t a penalty or a dive.”
After the match, ex-ref-turned-pundit Mark Clattenburg went back on his earlier remarks to explain that there was accidental contact from the Arsenal defender, meaning Willian wasn’t guilty of simulation, whilst Poll has taken a similar stance – arguing the incident was neither a penalty or a foul. But where do you stand on this one?
Whilst the decision to book Willian for diving may have simply been events happening too fast for Madley to make the right call (it took several replays for Cattenburg to decide it wasn’t simulation), it still feels as if Pedro’s red card could have been avoided – no matter what side of the debate you stand on.
Had Madley taken a stronger hold of the game earlier on when some meaty challenges (by Community Shield standards anyway) were taking place, Pedro may not have brashly lunged at a player moving the ball away from him. Likewise, had Madley not dished out four yellow cards already, he may have left Pedro off with a more lenient punishment.
The game lacked real flow as well, with Madley awarding one foul per 4.5 minutes. But that could be more a consequence of both sides lacking sharpness at this stage of the new season; clumsy football has a knack of leading to more fouls, free kicks and balls going out of play. So, how do you rate Madley’s performance out of five? Let us know below…